cre

Predictions of an imploding commercial real estate market in the U.S. are hardly new. But almost all the previous gloomy predictions came from analysts or folks in the commercial real estate business. So, when the government's own watchdog for the Troubled Asset Relief Program says things could get...

Losses on commercial property loans are one problem. But a bigger, often-overlooked, risk is the potential for CRE to be a drag on the U.S. economy for years to come, or its potential to trigger a slide back, into a double-dip recession.

The FDIC released new guidelines to bank examiners on Oct. 30, and they present a more "liberal" view of what is and is not a nonperforming commercial real estate loan. In theory, the regulations could reduce the number of bank write-offs. The guidelines say that "while CRE [commercial real estate]...